Posts Tagged ‘
Dental Patient Education ’

Giveaways, incentives, gifts, discounts or promotions . . . no matter what we call them, this is one of the most controversial topics in dental marketing. Do they have a place among your practice-building tools?

The season of sweets officially kicks off with Halloween trick-or-treating and is closely followed by school parties and family gatherings. There, gingerbread, pie, holiday cookies and candy play a starring role. These sweets can wreak havoc on teeth and gums, making the holidays prime time for cavities.

Some dental specialty practices spend hundreds of dollars printing attractive brochures to market their practices. A sharp design is important, along with the usual elements of a good brochure: biographies of you and your staff, photographs of your office and your practice’s contact information. But pretty is not everything.

Many times, marketing efforts are focused solely on attracting new patients to a dental practice, often at the expense of nurturing existing patients. In fact, those existing patients are perhaps your most valuable asset: Unlike potential patients, who must be carefully wooed and courted, existing patients already trust you and value your service.

Even the most successful dental practice will soon go broke without quality patients who pay, stay and refer to their practice. But how do you maintain high-quality patients while you concentrate on the clinical side of your business? Here are some quick tips to consider:

When was the last time your dental patients heard from you? If you do not reach out to your existing patients on a regular basis you can miss the boat for referrals and risk loosing dental patients to your competition. Engaging with your patients only during office visits is not enough. Here are a few effective ways to stay close throughout the year:

Many elements of dental marketing are difficult to track and quantify. But many activities can be tracked, and therefore your return on investment (ROI) can be measured. Patient referrals are one of your specialty practice’s most measurable marketing techniques.

In these challenging economic times, dental practitioners have to work smarter, not harder, to weather the storm. But the good news is that with a number of simple strategies, you can market your business and bolster the success of your practice in the face of the current downturn. According to Jeff Francis, marketing director at Practice Café, dental practitioners can follow a few essential practices that will serve you well.

There is an old saying: “The more informed and knowledgeable your patients are, the better.” Indeed, continued patient education will generate more activity and referrals. Patients often do not understand the full range of expertise available within your dental practice or the full scope of services you provide.

When a new patient comes to your dental practice, you are given a precious opportunity to build a relationship of trust that can result in significant advantages for your practice: Not only can you help ensure that your new patient returns again and again for continued treatment but you can also help “train” them to bring new patients to you.